The city was quieter now.
Not silent—but calmer. The kind of quiet that came after chaos, when the adrenaline faded and everyone remembered how to breathe again.
Sirens had faded into the distance. Fires were being handled by teams that actually knew what they were doing. Rain softened into a steady drizzle, washing away ash and heat from the streets below, leaving everything clean and cold.
Eli stood at the edge of a rooftop, hands in his pockets, looking out over the skyline.
For once…
Nothing was exploding.
It felt wrong.
Behind him, footsteps.
Light. Controlled. Familiar.
"You missed one."
Eli didn't turn. A small smile tugged at his lips. "Intentionally. Figured I'd leave something for you."
Natasha Romanoff stopped beside him, following his gaze across the city. Rain beaded on her jacket, catching the distant glow of emergency lights.
"You're getting better," she said.
Eli's smirk widened faintly. "That almost sounded like a compliment."
"It wasn't." Her voice was smooth, unbothered. "It was an observation."
"I'll take it."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Rain tapped softly against the rooftop. The city breathed below them—alive, safe, still standing.
Because of them.
Eli exhaled slowly, the weight of two years settling into his bones. "…Do you ever stop?"
Natasha glanced at him. "Stop what?"
"This." He gestured vaguely toward the city. "Fighting. Missions. Saving people. Almost dying every other week. The whole… saving the world gig."
A pause. Then, simply: "No."
Eli let out a quiet huff, half laugh, half sigh. "Yeah. Thought so."
He leaned back slightly against the ledge, rain dripping from his white hair. "I've been here two years."
She didn't interrupt.
"In those two years… I don't think I've ever seen you take a break. Like, an actual break. Not a 'I'm sitting down but still monitoring twelve channels' break."
"That's not true," she said.
Eli raised an eyebrow. "You slept once."
"That counts."
He smiled despite himself.
Then looked back at the skyline, voice quieter. "…I mean it, though. Do you ever just… leave? Go somewhere that isn't on fire? Somewhere that doesn't need saving?"
Natasha didn't answer immediately. Her eyes moved across the city—not scanning, not assessing. Just… looking.
"…Not really," she admitted.
Eli nodded slowly. "…We should take one."
She turned slightly, curiosity flickering in her green eyes.
"A break."
"A vacation," he clarified. "Somewhere quiet. No missions. No explosions. No Tony in our ears every five minutes."
Right on cue—
"I heard that," came Tony's voice through the comms.
Eli didn't even react. "That's exactly why I said it."
"Rude. Incredibly rude. I provide valuable commentary."
Natasha crossed her arms, a faint almost-smile tugging at her lips. "A vacation," she repeated, like she was testing how the word felt in her mouth.
Eli nodded. "Yeah. We don't save anyone. We don't fight anything. We just… exist. Like normal people. Well. Normal-ish."
"I give that about six hours before something explodes," Tony cut in.
"Five," Eli said.
"Optimistic."
"…And where would we even go?" Natasha asked, her tone carefully casual.
Eli shrugged. "Somewhere far. Quiet. No aliens. No gods—"
The comms crackled sharply.
Urgent.
"…Yeah, about that," Tony said.
Eli closed his eyes. "…No."
"Yep. We've got a situation."
Natasha's posture shifted instantly—shoulders straight, eyes sharp. "Report."
"Thor is back."
Eli turned, frowning. "…That's not automatically a problem."
Tony hesitated. "Yeah… but this part might be."
A beat.
"He's asking for you."
Eli blinked.
Then remembered.
Two years ago. A conversation on a rooftop, not unlike this one. He'd asked Thor for a way to reach Knowhere, to find a so called way home, where he came from. Thor had promised to return when he could.
A promise.
A very delayed one.
"…Of course he comes now," Eli muttered.
He glanced at Natasha, stepping a little closer without thinking. The space between them felt heavier suddenly.
"I guess Thor's finally here to keep that promise," he said quietly. "Take me to Knowhere."
Natasha's expression didn't change much—it rarely did. But there was something there. Something subtle in the way her eyes held his for just a fraction longer than necessary.
"…Then I guess the vacation's canceled," she said lightly.
Too lightly.
Eli looked at her.
He understood.
"…Yeah." A pause. "I still have to go."
She nodded once. Just once, Of course he did because he needed to go home since when he first come to earth he was just a 17 or 18 years old kid and staying far from home in not healthy.(FYI they still think he comes from another planet in there universe) She looked at him, though he had not changed and just got a little bit taller he was now a young man, a young man she had spent two years with she gave a small smile and said no more.
Thunder cracked.
Loud. Close. The kind of sound that rattled windows and made the hairs on your arm stand up.
The air shifted.
"Guys," Tony cut in, "he's not waiting. Thor's on his way. ETA about—"
A spinning sound tore through the air.
Wind. Lightning. Raw power.
And then—
He arrived.
Thor landed with a heavy impact that cracked the rooftop, lightning crawling across his armor before fading into the storm above. Mjolnir hummed in his grip.
He straightened, a wide grin spreading across his face.
"Eli Keakabetse! Future Grand Celestial!" he boomed, voice carrying over the rain.
Then, softer—genuine warmth in his eyes—"Natasha Romanoff. It has been too long."
He crossed the distance in two strides and pulled Eli into a quick, powerful embrace that lifted him off his feet. Then he nodded respectfully to Natasha, the gesture of someone who knew exactly who he was dealing with.
"Hey, Thor." Eli smiled, genuinely glad to see him despite the timing. "It's been a while. How've you been?"
Thor's smile flickered.
Just slightly.
"…I have been well," he said.
Eli tilted his head, studying him. "…You don't look well."
Thor hesitated. The god of thunder, who faced down armies without flinching, suddenly looked… tired.
Then he exhaled, the weight of something heavy pressing down on his shoulders.
"My mother has fallen," he said quietly. "And Jane… is unwell."
The air shifted.
Eli's smile faded.
Thor forced a smile—brave, but not convincing. "But I still have allies. The Avengers. And now, it seems, a future grand Celestial who owes me a favor."
Eli and Natasha exchanged a look. A whole conversation passed between them in that glance.
Before either could respond, Thor straightened, the weight lifting slightly as he focused on the task at hand.
"Are you ready, young warrior? To journey to Knowhere?"
Eli turned to Natasha.
There was something unspoken there. Years of missions. Late-night conversations. Near-death experiences. Stupid nicknames that had somehow become precious.
She tilted her head slightly, that familiar hint of teasing in her eyes. "What? Don't tell me you're going to miss me."
He smiled faintly. "Of course not."
A beat.
"And besides… I can come back."
That… helped.
Just a little.
Eli stepped toward Thor, then paused. Looked back.
Natasha studied him. Reading him. Filing away every detail like she always did.
Then—
"You still owe me that vacation."
Eli blinked.
Then smiled. A real smile. "…Yeah. I do."
Lightning gathered. The Bifrost began to form around them, golden light swirling up from the rooftop.
Eli looked at her one last time. "…I'll be back."
She didn't smile. Didn't say anything dramatic.
Just—"Be careful."
That was enough.
"Kid," Tony's voice cut in one last time, "don't die out there. I don't have time to train another partner."
A beat.
"Also, come back to your little red—"
"Tony." Natasha's voice was flat. Warning.
"…I'm ending that sentence early. For my own safety."
Eli laughed despite himself, the sound swallowed by the growing light.
The Bifrost engulfed him.
And then—
He was gone.
After
The sky slowly calmed.
Lightning faded into distant memory. The storm dissolved into steady rain. The rooftop was empty now, save for one figure.
Natasha stood where he'd left her.
Still.
Watching the space where he'd been.
"You're still looking."
Tony's voice, quieter now. No jokes.
"I'm monitoring the situation," she replied.
"Uh-huh."
A pause.
"…He'll be back, you know."
Natasha didn't answer.
She just kept watching the sky.
Bifrost — Between Worlds
Golden light streamed past them as they hurtled through the Bifrost, stars and galaxies blurring into streaks of impossible color.
Eli stood beside Thor, the cosmic wind roaring around them but never touching.
"…Can I ask something?" Eli said.
Thor nodded.
"Can you Drop me outside Knowhere. Not inside?"
Thor raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
Eli sighed. "I'd rather not run into Taneleer Tivan and end up in a glass case. The Collector has a thing for rare specimens. And I'm definitely a rare specimen."
Thor chuckled, the sound warm despite everything. "A wise concern." He studied Eli for a moment. "…You do look quite collectible."
"Not helping."
Thor lifted his head, voice carrying through the Bifrost. "Heimdall! Leave him beyond Knowhere's gates. The Collector's reach does not extend there."
The light shifted, adjusting their trajectory.
"Thank you," Eli said.
Thor nodded, his expression sobering. "I will not accompany you further. There are matters I must attend to. Jane… and others."
"Yeah." Eli met his eyes. "I figured. Go. Do what you need to do."
"Be cautious, young warrior. Knowhere is not what it once was. Chaos finds it often."(I think Thor might have known about the skull before the Tivan Group settled there)
Eli smirked. "Chaos finds me often. We're old friends."
Thor smiled—genuine this time. "Then you will fit right in."
The light flared.
And Eli was alone.
In Space, near KnowhereEli floated forward, momentum carrying him through the void.
Then He saw it.
Knowhere.
A massive Celestial skull, floating in space like the corpse of a god. Miles high. Ancient beyond comprehension. The remains of something that had once shaped worlds.
Impossible.
Silent.
Terrifying.
Eli stopped, just staring.
"…Yeah," he muttered to himself. "That's not creepy at all. Just a giant dead god head. Totally normal."
Then—
Explosions.
Ships fighting. Energy blasts lighting up the darkness. Movement near the skull's surface.
His eyes sharpened, instincts kicking in.
A small pod, damaged, drifting toward the void.
A woman—green-skinned, familiar from movie he'd seen—clinging to the wreckage.
A man flying toward her, boots blazing with light, desperation in every movement.
Recognition hit instantly.
Gamora.
Peter Quill.
The Guardians of the Galaxy.
Right in the middle of something very bad.
Eli sighed, the sound lost in the vacuum.
"…Of course."
He floated forward, acceleration building.
"I had to arrive during this scene.")